A former Clemson star has ultimately landed on an NFL team’s injured reserve ahead of the 2026 season.
This past weekend, the San Francisco 49ers waived/injured former Clemson defensive end Xavier Thomas.
From CBS Sports, on what Thomas’ status was after being designated as waived/injured:
“The nature and severity of Thomas’ injury is not clear. However, he will revert to the 49ers’ injured reserve if he clears waivers, forcing him to miss the entire 2026 season unless he reaches an injury settlement with San Francisco.”
On Monday, David Bonilla of 49ers Webzone reported that Thomas “went unclaimed and has landed on the 49ers’ injured reserve list.”
The 49ers made the waived/injured move with Thomas in order to open up a roster spot for tight end Khalil Dinkins, who was re-signed to a three-year contract.
Thomas signed a one-year deal with the 49ers just days prior on Aug. 12.
Thomas previously spent time on the Houston Texans’ practice squad and was later waived with an injury designation this past May.
Last November, the Arizona Cardinals released Thomas, who was selected by Arizona in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft with the 138th overall pick.
The now 26-year-old didn’t record a defensive statistic last season while appearing in four games for Arizona. He played 15 total defensive snaps and 42 special teams snaps across those four contests.
As a rookie in 2024, the 6-foot-2, 250-pounder posted 10 total tackles, two tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, four quarterback hits, a forced fumble and a pass defended over 14 games.
Thomas made an immediate impact as a reserve at Clemson in 2018, earning near-unanimous freshman All-American acclaim. A two-time All-ACC selection in 2019 and 2021 and a 2018 national champion, he was credited with 133 tackles (34 for loss), nine pass breakups, six forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries over 61 games (30 starts) in his career as a Tiger from 2018-23.
A former five-star recruit and top-five national prospect, Thomas racked up a team-high 21 quarterback pressures to go with 28 tackles (four for loss), three sacks, four pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery over 12 games (11 starts) in 2023. He exited Clemson as one of nine players in school history to play in 60 career games at Clemson.